Princes, and Pirates, and Thieves, Oh my!
by ScapeArtist
Summary: Charming, Hook, and Robin Hood each provide their true loves with an abundance of brains, heart, and courage.
1. The Scarecrow

**A/N: I see Charming/Snow, Hook/Emma, and Robin Hood/Regina as having the same traits as the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and the Cowardly Lion. In the books, the three characters already had what they were looking for (brains, heart, and courage). In OUAT, Charming shares his brain with Snow, Hook gives his heart to Emma, and Robin gives Regina the courage she needs to face her fears. **

**Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoy it. **

* * *

"Mary Margaret..." David called out to his very pregnant wife who was standing still in the middle of their living room almost as if she were listening for something even though she wasn't hearing him. Getting no answer from her, he called her again, this time a little louder. "Mary Margaret?" When she continued to stand there, oblivious to his call with a puzzled look on her face, he tried one more time. "Snow!" he practically shouted.

Snow White gasped, startled, and turned to David, a somewhat pained smile on her face. "David! I didn't hear you come down."

David walked over to her and put his hand on her shoulder and looked into her eyes. "What's the matter? Are you ok? Is it the baby?"

Snow chuckled lightly and put her hands protectively over her baby bump. "We're both fine, David. It's stupid, really. I came in here and promptly forgot why. Again. I was just trying to remember what it was is all." Snow sighed deeply and rolled her eyes. "This happens more than I care to admit these days."

David pulled her in for a hug and rested his cheek on the top of her head. "That used to happen when you were pregnant with Emma too, if I recall correctly. Sometimes I would see you walk in and out of a room two or three times in a row with that same look on your face."

Her muffled voice sounded tired as she leaned into him. "Mmm hmm. I remember too, but it wasn't as bad then, though. I think this curse is making it worse. There's so much more I'm missing. It's like everything is just out of my mental reach and I'm really starting to feel..." she trailed off, but looked up at David, her eyebrows furrowed and lips pinched together as she worked through her thoughts for the right word.

"Disoriented?" David offered.

"Yeah. That," she said and smiled at him sadly before her face fell again. "And useless," she added softly.

David held her out at arm's length and searched her face trying to make eye contact. She looked down at the floor just past him with a small frown and tears starting to well in her eyes. He brushed the tear that spilled over onto her cheek with his thumb then placed the palm of his hand over her very round belly. The baby moved under him and he beamed. "Useless? You are far from useless, Mary Margaret."

"It's bad enough that I have...pregnant brain and can barely remember either of my names," Snow complained, "but not being able to remember the last year too, it's a bit much." She put her hands on top of her head and rubbed back and forth as if to shake her stuck words and memories loose. "I just feel like my head is full of straw. I am of no help to Emma figuring out who could have done this to us and it's making me feel so..."

"Frustrated," David finished.

"Yeah," Snow sighed.

David held both of Snow's hands in his and gave each of them a small squeeze. "Listen, I get it. We are all frustrated. And angry, and anxious. But we'll figure it out—we always do. Emma's got lots of help with this, and you'll still be able to contribute, I'm sure. I know Emma really appreciates you spending time with Henry so she can have the leeway to follow up on leads," he said, consoling her as best as he could.

Snow swung their hands in unison and gave David a dissatisfied grimace. "I know she does. I just feel like I'm failing her...again."

"Snow," David said sternly. "You are not failing her. If there was one thing I wish you'd forget it's that."

Letting go of his hands, Snow replied, "I wish I could." Something on the end table by the couch caught her eye and her face lit up. "Oh! I just remembered what it was I came in here for!" she cried. She waddled over to the table and picked up a baby book she had been reading. She turned to David with a big grin. "My book! I need to return it to the library."

"Do you want me to return it for you? I'm heading out now to meet up with Emma and Hook to see if we can't track down where those flying monkeys are nesting...or whatever it is they do."

Snow shook her head and hugged the book to her chest. "No, that's ok. I've got to go pick up Henry at Granny's. He and I can drop it off later. Thanks though. And Charming..." she said, sidling up to him.

"Hmmm?" he intoned as she caressed the side of his face.

"Be careful," she whispered and kissed him tenderly.

"How could I forget that?" he asked and kissed her again.

* * *

Snow woke up the next morning after another fitful night's sleep thanks to her internal night owl who felt the need to kick and roll every time she was about to doze off. She was exhausted, weary, and foggy, but part of her was grateful she was almost at the end of her pregnancy, if only because she wasn't sure she could take too many more sleepless nights like that. There was no one to share the duty of carrying a baby.

David had already left for the morning and Snow hauled herself to her feet and patted her belly and said good morning to her constant companion. She noticed something different in her room and laughed when she saw all the brightly-colored pads of sticky notes and pens on various surfaces in their bedroom and bathroom. Snow could see them in the living room and in the kitchen, too, as she made her way to the kettle for her morning tea. She even found a set in the pocket of her robe and could see one sticking out of her coat pocket and tucked into the pocket of her purse.

But that was nothing compared to what she found next. On the island in the kitchen, was a large box with an enormous, fluffy red bow on top. Curious, Snow pulled the bow off and opened the box to find a Nerf archery set and a note.

_Snow,_

_Thought this might help you clear your mind. The target is set up on the bedroom door._

_Don't forget, I love you._

_Charming_

"Always thinkin', that one," she said, shaking her head as she explored the contents of the box.

Snow stifled an excited giggle that was dangerously close to leading to a round of happy sobbing. She pulled out the bow and found the best way to position it around her girth and drew on the target, her mind completely focused for the first time since they woke up back in Storybrooke.


	2. The Tin Man

"Why?! Why would you do such a thing? Are you _insane_?" Emma's hair was disheveled and laced with leaves and tangled in twigs while she gripped her gun, knuckles white, her breath shallow and rapid coming out in puffs of mist around her head. Her eyes were as wild looking as the rest of her as she paced back and forth, body tense and jerky, in front of Hook who was also breathing heavy and cradling his hooked arm with his other hand. There was a long scratch up the sleeve of his leather coat, and blood trickling from the corner of his mouth down to his chin. He winced as he wiped it away with his thumb and flicked the glob of blood on to the ground at his feet.

"I might ask the same of you! What the hell were you thinking trying to take that on by yourself?!" Hook shouted back, pointing his hook in her direction. It was covered in the blood of the flying monkey he had just fought off. Between them, the body of said flying monkeylay in a twisted furry heap on the ground. He wasn't about to take flack for helping her when she needed it even if she wouldn't admit that she did.

Emma stopped in her tracks and glared at him, gritted teeth and clenched jaw hardening her features. Neither the look on her face, nor the gun in her hand stopped Hook from limping into her space and piercing her with his stare. His voice was sharp and rocky with restrained emotion as he bit out, "Did you think I would just casually stand by and watch as you were attacked, Emma? Do you think I traveled between worlds to get to you, only to have you ripped away from me before my very eyes? Did you think I wouldn't fight for you?"

"I was going to shoot it!" she bellowed.

"When?! You'd barely pulled your weapon and it was almost upon you. There was no time! You hesitated and I saw an opportunity, so I took it. My apologies for not asking permission, m'lady," he finished sarcastically with an exaggerated bow.

"It could have killed you..._I_ could have hurt you...you..._idiot_!" she cried. Her face was flushed with anger and her eyes wide with fear.

Hook shouted back, arms open wide, "If saving _you_ makes _me_ an idiot, then, yes! I'm the biggest idiot in all the realms, and I will happily proclaim it and continue to be an idiot for the rest of my life if it means keeping you alive and somewhat safe." Putting his arms back down, Hook lifted Emma's chin with his crooked finger and in a low, serious voice said, "When I told you that I came back to save you, Emma, it wasn't just that one time. It was for all time."

A silent sob wracked Emma as she collapsed to the ground, limbs finally loose, but her face still strained. "I don't know if I can do this," she said in a voice so quiet Hook barely heard her.

He crouched down in front of her and sighed. "Emma, what's really the problem?" he asked softly.

She looked up at him with watery eyes and sniffed. "I don't want to be the death of you. I don't think I could handle that. There are a line of exes in my wake and more than a few are dead, Hook. Being with me is dangerous. I couldn't lose you, too."

"Do you think, love, you are the only one who has lost someone they cared about? Need I remind you that one hundred percent of my former loves have died tragically in front of me?"

Emma shook her head and wiped her eyes before taking an unsteady breath. Hook gently picked a leaf from her hair and tossed it aside. He budged Emma over and sat down heavily beside her with a pained grunt.

Gingerly resting his forearms on his bent knees, Hook looked over at Emma who was avoiding his glance. "Listen, love. Calling me an idiot is not going to drive me away. Neither is pointing out the obvious risks that come with being a part of the Savior's life, nor, even, is revealing the possibility that you snore like a drunken dwarf in your sleep. I'm not leaving you."

"How could you want this life?!" Emma blurted out, gesturing to the dead flying monkey in front of her. "How can you see everything that happens to me and around me and because of me and not run screaming? Hell, most days I want to run screaming!" She choked back a sob and roughly wiped at her eyes.

Hook gave her a few seconds to collect herself before answering her. "Because the alternative is far worse, I'm afraid," he said roughly. With a bitter grin he asserted, "I'm not them you know. Any of them. Not your parents, not Neal, most definitely not Walsh, not anyone else who came in between them. I will never do to you what they did. Or haven't you noticed that yet? None of this," he nodded at scene in front of them, "scares me. You know what does scare me though, love?"

"What?" Emma asked in a small voice.

"Being without you. I've done it for a year now, and I can assure you I did not enjoy it. Not for one second of one day."

"I'm so sorry, Killian," Emma said sincerely, finally meeting his eyes. She searched his face as if trying to find the hidden places he was keeping his pain so she could soothe it away.

He smiled at her and shook his head. "No need to be sorry, love. It wasn't your choice or your fault," he said, putting his arm around her shoulders to comfort her.

She leaned against him, rested her head on his shoulder and sighed. "Just be patient with me?"

Hook chuckled. "Lucky for you, aside from surviving, the other thing I excel at, darling, is patience. I can guarantee you a minimum of 330 years of it. After that, well..."

"I won't take _that _long," Emma assured him.

"Good," he answered.


	3. The Lion

Regina sat in a booth at Granny's slowly sipping tea that had long since gone cold, her plate of food barely touched, and not just because it was too salty for her taste. She watched as Henry and his _family_ enjoyed a boisterous meal a few booths away. Emma had invited her to join them, but she was unsure she would be able to interact with them and not freak Henry out by saying something he would find...off-putting. They had just struck a tentative beginning to a new relationship and she was doing her best not to push things and ruin her chances at helping him regain his memories. But this...sitting on the sidelines was wearing thin and it had been barely a day.

"Why don't you just go over and join them?" said the man at the table next to her as he leaned over in her direction.

"Why don't you mind your own business?" Regina shot back with a glare that had withered many a soul in a past life. She had no idea who this presumptuous, outward bound alumni was, but she was having none of it.

"I'm just trying to help," he said, crossing his arms over his chest, regarding her with a look just shy of pity.

Looking down, Regina said with haughty distain, "I didn't ask for your help."

"Fine, I won't help. But at least let me buy you fresh tea so that you have a good excuse to keep sitting there," he said as he stood up and walked to the counter, not waiting for an answer.

When he returned, hot water and tea bag in hand, Regina looked at him curiously. Was he someone she knew during the past year? He was hardly someone she thought she would associate with even on her worst day. Nothing was clicking, and while she should have cast him away, something stopped her. Instead, she raised an eyebrow and said, "I don't take candy from strangers."

"Then let me introduce myself. Robin, formerly of Locksley. Very nice to make your acquaintance, your Majesty." He set the tea down in front of her and slid into the opposite seat in the booth.

"Here I'm Mayor Mills. Regina Mills. And, thank you for the tea. Just to be sure, it isn't laced with some kind of poison, is it?" she asked pertly.

Robin shook his head, leaned in conspiratorially, and whispered, "Not by my hand, but Granny certainly was shooting daggers your way. Shall I try it first, test its veracity?" He winked at her and gave her a toothsome grin.

Raising the cup to her mouth and smiling broadly, Regina said, "No need. Poisoned tea wouldn't be the worst thing that's happened to me this week." At that, she took a sip and savored the sharp tang and heat as she swallowed with no ill effects.

"What do you mean by that?" Robin asked with concern.

Regina was baffled at Robin's interest in her, but even more irritated at her inability to stop him from being interested. "Nothing. It's this curse. That's all."

"No it's not. You are talking about that boy you were watching with such longing. Who is he to you?"

"He's my son, if you must know. He just doesn't remember me."

"That must be very difficult for you," Robin said, his eyes meeting hers with a sympathetic note.

Regina looked away quickly and took a deep breath. "Torture, actually," she admitted.

"I can imagine," Robin said, nodding.

"Oh, Really. How could you begin to imagine what I'm going through?" Regina spat out.

"I have a son. Roland. I would be devastated if he didn't know me."

"I see. I'm sorry..." Regina shifted in her seat, uncomfortable with her own presumptuousness.

Robin let it go without reproach, and instead asked, "Did the curse separate you two somehow?"

"Not this curse but the one prior. I was never to see him again."

"Then you are lucky!" Robin exclaimed, a smile working across his scruffy face, lighting it up.

Regina gave a short, shocked huff and sat up, rigid at his impossible optimism. "You call _this_ lucky? To be so close to my child and not have him know me, not have him know how much I need him? What are you some sort of sadist?"

"Regina, don't you see you are already one step closer than you were just the other day to being with him? How can you see this as a bad thing?" Robin shook his head in confusion.

He had a point, but she had been too caught up in her pain to see it. "I'm afraid I'll mess it up," Regina said with a sigh as she leaned back in her seat. "That I'll say or do the wrong thing and drive him away for good. I can't lose him again."

"Don't be afraid. He is your son. That bond can't be broken because of some curse. Give him a chance. Give yourself a chance."

Regina just looked down into her tea cup and gave it a gentle swish, upsetting the placid surface. She looked over his shoulder and caught Henry's eye. The boy smiled shyly at her, and she returned it with a small grin of her own that belied the immense swelling of her heart.

* * *

On her way out of the diner, Regina stopped at the booth where Emma, Henry, and the Charmings sat eating their dessert. She gave them all a smile that she tried to keep natural for Henry's benefit.

"Emma, I'm sorry to interrupt. I was wondering...if I might borrow Henry tomorrow and take him on that tour of the town and out for ice cream as I had promised. If it's ok with Henry of course."

Emma smiled brightly at Regina then Henry. "Fine by me," she agreed. "Henry?"

Henry nodded and smiled at Regina the way he used to when she would offer to do something fun with him. "Sure. That sounds great. I'd like that."

Regina exhaled with relief. "Excellent. I'll pick you up around noon?"

"Ok. See you tomorrow," Henry said, waving to her.

"See you tomorrow."


End file.
